ICC appoints judges to Kenyan cases

The ICC announced a decision to appoint two separate panels to serve as judges in cases against the Kenyan president and vice president. The International Criminal Court said it appointed two three-judge chambers for the cases against Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and Vice President William Ruto. Both men were indicted by the court for allegedly playing a role in the post-election violence that left more than 1,000 Kenyans dead in 2007. Kenyatta bested challenger Raila Odinga in elections early this year. Odinga's challenge to election results in 2007 sparked the violence. A Kenyan truth and reconciliation committee accused Kenyatta and Ruto of planning and financing the post-election violence. The committee was set up to investigate alleged human rights abuses committed in Kenya from independence in 1963 to 2008. Committee Chairman Bethuel Kiplagat said the leaders named in the investigation should have to apologize to the nation for their alleged crimes, the BBC reports. Kiplagat is named in the probe for supposedly playing a role in atrocities committed in 1984 when he served in the Kenyan Foreign Ministry. Both men deny the ICC charges. Kenyatta is slated to appear before The Hague in July. He said he believes the charges will be dropped because of similar developments in related cases.